Agents laughing in some markets, crying in others

Vendors in Melbourne made 52,530 house sales in the 12 months to 30 November 2015, according to Onthehouse Data. That represented a 16.4 per cent jump on the year before. There were also 40,327 unit sales – a 9.7 per cent increase on the previous year.

Brisbane ranked second in the growth charts, with house sales rising 7.4 per cent to 41,496 and unit sales rising 7.9 per cent to 20,020.

In Adelaide, house sales climbed 6.3 per cent to 19,361, while unit sales climbed 6.4 per cent to 5,102.

The Canberra market experienced a 0.8 per cent increase in house sales, to 4,728, alongside a 24.5 per cent increase in unit sales, to 3,876.

Sydney also enjoyed growth in both sectors, with house sales up 1.7 per cent to 47,253 and unit sales up 4.0 per cent to 46,721.

The picture was mixed for Hobart: house sales grew 4.1 per cent to 2,124, but unit sales declined 1.2 per cent to 657.

However, the picture was uniformly bleak for Australia’s two weakest capital city markets.

In Perth, house sales fell 13.8 per cent to 24,138 and unit sales fell 15.7 per cent to 10,579.

Darwin was even gloomier, with house sales down 16.8 per cent to 1,138 and unit sales down 34.6 per cent to 490.

Across Australia, there was an increase in real estate activity, with house sales increasing 5.5 per cent to 340,704 and unit sales increasing 4.8 per cent to 166,284.